


Baby It’s Cold...In Here

by rogueshadows



Category: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016)
Genre: Huddling For Warmth, Locked In, Love Confessions, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-19
Updated: 2018-02-19
Packaged: 2019-03-21 01:40:51
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,024
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13730415
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rogueshadows/pseuds/rogueshadows
Summary: Bodhi runs from his matchmaking mother and ends up locked in a freezer with his best friend Cassian as a result.





	Baby It’s Cold...In Here

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to misskatieleigh for beta'ing!! <3

“Cassian, get over here quick!” Bodhi says just above a whisper, ushering him over to the corner of the hallway frantically and hoping none of his family members will find them.

“Shouldn’t you be with the rest of the groomsmen?” Cassian asks when he’s close enough, Bodhi’s relief at seeing him almost overwhelmed by how good he looks. He’d only caught a glimpse of how well the tailored suit fit when they’d all first arrived at the reception hall earlier. Now, with his hair a bit more disheveled, Cassian looks distractingly gorgeous. Bodhi refocuses on the issue at hand despite the unbidden flush running up his neck. Now is no time to get caught staring at his best friend like an idiot. 

“You know that’s not where my mother even sat me! A table full of ‘eligible singles’ as she put it. I feel like I’m on a speed date every time I head back there!” Bodhi complains, hating how ridiculous he knows he probably sounds. If he’d been warned that his mother was going to take the wedding as some grand opportunity to set him up, he’d have begged Bokan to elope instead. Shouldn’t her focus be more on his brother getting married in the first place? 

"I told you that you should have brought Jyn as your date.” 

"God no, if I'd brought anyone she might already be planning the wedding. Jyn would have to go along with the whole thing for at least a few years before we could divorce!" 

He’s half serious, the last and possibly only time that he’d brought a guy home his mother had asked a million questions about his family and how he planned to support himself. That was in Bodhi’s senior year of _high school_. (Cassian had told him he was being overdramatic then, that she just wanted to make sure Wedge was nice.)

Bodhi shakes his head at the memory with an anxious sigh, trying to feel more annoyed at how amused Cassian looks. "So you're just going to hide down here all night?" Cassian inquires. Bodhi leans back against the wall, hating that he’s really considering that option at his only brother’s wedding. He’d give anything to just go back out, mingle, and maybe dance with Cassian. The expectation of it all has become too intense, some pretense that he’s _next_ as all his relatives keep putting it, the phrase sounding more and more ominous at the night goes on.

"Yes," Bodhi answers Cassian with a pleading look. "Unless you want to sneak out with me?" Cassian almost looks like he’s considering the idea for a moment.

“Sure,” Cassian says, and then more teasingly, “let’s make a break for it before someone with desires on your virtue finds you.” 

_“Cas,”_ Bodhi whines while his best friend grins.

“Come on, I'll just sneak you over to my table. It won't be so bad.” Bodhi sighs, but nods in compromise, thinking that’ll at least keep him in the clear for a bit. Who could bother to look at Bodhi with Cassian around anyway? He’s just about to follow Cassian back into the reception when he hears his mother’s voice from around the corner. ‘ _You just have to meet my son, he's so smart, at school to be an engineer!’_ In a panic, Bodhi searches the hallway for some escape.

"Oh god, who is she hyping me up to _now_? Cassian...we have to...perfect!" Bodhi spots a large metal door a few steps away and makes a swift decision, unable to go through another round of small talk and terrible flirting. He grabs Cassian by the sleeve, opening the door to tug them both inside and away from his mother’s matchmaking.

“ _Really,_ Bo?” is all Cassian has a chance get out before they’re hidden away in the closet.

The first thing he notices in the dark is how close he’s accidentally pressed himself to Cassian in the process, crushing him back against the firmly shut door. Bodhi backs off in embarrassment only to notice the second thing, it’s _freezing_ in the small room.Which makes sense considering the fact that it’s not a closet at all. It’s a freezer. 

Bodhi can faintly hear the sound of the voices outside fading and he heaves a relieved sigh, going for the door handle to get them out only to discover...there isn’t one.

_“Fuck.”_

_\---_

Bodhi bangs against the door fitfully for a while in panic, until his hand aches against the metal and he has to stop. Cassian tries too though he doesn’t seem so worried, yelling out and clanging against the metal shelf behind them a few times. After a while, they have to admit that no one else is lingering in the secluded hallway, which was specifically as far from his family as Bodhi could get. Bodhi hangs his head and berates himself mentally for being so stupid, and worse, for dragging Cassian into it. Cassian eyes him with more concern, reaching out to brush his hand against Bodhi’s tender knuckles. Bodhi takes a deep breath, trying to make the ache in his chest abate and failing. He thinks it might be actually getting colder in the small space as his breath puffs out in front of him.

It’s been nearly half an hour.

“They have to let us out eventually,” Cassian says, “the cake is in here.” Cassian nods over Bodhi’s shoulder at it. Bodhi can’t help the sharp laugh that comes out of him, anxiety mounting in his chest despite Cassian’s calm demeanor. If he had just agreed to go on a date with someone, or at least been brave enough to tell his mother he wasn’t interested in any of her matchmaking prospects, none of this would have happened.

“Before or after we get hypothermia?” Bodhi asks, feeling miserable. He wraps his arms tightly around himself to suppress a shiver, wishing his dress shirt wasn’t so thin. Cassian eyes him with sympathy and his focus almost makes Bodhi feel worse.

“I wouldn’t let that happen. C’mere, you aren’t even wearing your suit jacket.” Cassian opens his jacket in offering and Bodhi tenses, the idea of being pressed close against him setting off warning bells in his mind. For reasons he’d rather not contend with in the moment, such as his blatantly hopeless crush on Cassian. The tightness in his chest that always follows the light look in Cassian eyes is something he’s only become more sure of with time, a feeling that might never fade. Still, he can’t deny the chill rushing through his thin shirt or how inviting Cassian looks.

“Just don’t make fun of me after,” Bodhi says, taking a step closer into Cassian’s space and letting himself be enveloped in the heat of his arms. He presses his face into Cassian’s shoulder to stifle his own slightly hysterical laugh. “I’ll be laughing at myself enough, if we survive.”

Bodhi knows the statement is over dramatic, but the silliness is worth it for the way Cassian’s returning laughter eases some of the tension from his shoulders. Cassian tightens his arms around Bodhi.

“They’ll find us just like this and have to pry me off like the end of...what’s that movie with the big door in the ocean?”

“You _know_ that’s Titanic,” Bodhi says, “we watched it together and you looked heartbroken when that happened.”

“It was after finals, I was more heartbroken over my tests.” Cassian says in defense. 

“Please, like you were even worried about your scores. You’d studied nonstop for _weeks._ ”

“Exactly, not in my right mind for it to be held against me.’

Bodhi could joke about already holding himself against Cassian, hating that his mind would even come up with such a ridiculously bad line. He can’t think of anything else to fill the silence but the awkwardness isn’t soothed in the slightest by the next words from Cassian’s lips.

“So...what’s made you so adamantly against all your mother’s matches? I’m sure her judgment can’t be that bad.”

Bodhi heaves a sigh.

“Cassian, you know I’m terrible at dating anyway, and it’s not like they’d even be interested without my mother’s goading.”

“You are not, that one double date with me and Jyn was fine. With that guy, what was his name?” Bodhi recalls the night with clarity, during Jyn and Cassian’s approximate five seconds as a couple before they’d decided they made better friends. Jyn had been the one to bring along a guy for Bodhi and he questioned her judgment still for it.

“Are you kidding? Han was ridiculous and then he wound up with Leia’s brother who he met that same night!”

“I think they already knew each other,” Cassian says with some thought, “from Uber?”

“Not the point Cas, I couldn’t even keep his interest for an hour...”

“You’ve kept my interest for years,” Cassian says, and Bodhi has to laugh to cover the sudden jolt in his heart at the possible implications. Reining himself back into reality, where Cassian doesn’t mean it the way Bodhi wishes, he shakes his head. 

“It’s not the same,” Bodhi argues, “you’re my roommate, my best friend.”

Cassian’s makes a noise of disagreement.

“It’s not so different, I just like spending time with you and I think if you gave it a chance someone else would recognize you’re a catch too.” Cassian’s words are far too earnest and his face feels suddenly too close to Bodhi’s. Even though he still feels the chill at his back Bodhi backs away a step, disentangling himself from Cassian’s arms with some regret. 

“That’s just it, I’d rather spend time with you anyway. It just...doesn’t seem fair, or worth it.” He says it knowing Cassian could never understand his real frustration. It’s almost too easy to skirt around the truth with his very real insecurities as a shield. 

The truth is that when their final semester at college is over in the fall, Cassian could leave town, could chase the endless opportunities available to someone so smart and competent. Just because Bodhi wants to stick close to home doesn’t mean he can hold Cassian back too. It’s something Bodhi has been coming to terms with for a long while, and still, after years of friendship and four years living together, it’s hard for him. If these last few months are all they have he doesn’t want to give it up for anything, especially not to chase romance with people he barely has anything in common with. Even if his feelings are doomed to be unrequited, spending time with Cassian could never be something he regrets.

Cassian has this unreadable look on his face, somewhere between consideration and disbelief, that same bright intensity Bodhi has grown familiar with over time. It’s not always there, but sometimes Bodhi will look up and find himself caught in Cassian’s eyes, feeling weak like he might just confess everything. Bodhi sometimes lets himself dare to believe is only for him, like he might be the center of Cassian’s whole universe, if only for an instant. 

It’s a dangerous thought, and one that he knows in his heart can’t be true. 

“If spending time with me is really holding you back from dating...maybe we should just try to go on a date sometime?” Cassian asks the question lightly, but the look on his face is sincere. Bodhi feels warmth spread in his chest even in the cold room, looking down at his hands just to escape the open look of curiosity faced his way.

“Cassian, you know you don’t have to offer that, I’m not that pitiful, am I?” Bodhi laughs to cover the surge of painful want in his chest. “You’ve never been interested before and I just...couldn’t do that, to you or myself.” Cassian’s brow furrows at the answer and Bodhi expects to be scolded for being so self deprecating.

“I haven’t...Bodhi, are you serious right now?” Bodhi doesn’t expect the question in the slightest, but nods anyway, thinking it obvious that he wouldn’t joke about this and wishing Cassian wouldn’t either.

“Yeah, I mean, if you were...we’d have dated right? Because obviously _I_ feel...” Bodhi cuts himself off feeling in disarray at how close he’s edging into the truth, still stuck with the fear of how much it could change things. Cassian is looking at him though, breaking in to speak through Bodhi’s doubt.

“Bodhi, hey, look at me,” Cassian says, taking a step closer and shifting the balance between them, with Bodhi now nearly backed against the wall. Bodhi shifts his gaze up, trying to figure out what could possibly have Cassian looking this anxious. “I’ve thought you were beautiful since the day we met and once I got to know you it only made me more sure of that fact. I’ve _always_ been interested in you.” 

“We’ve known each other for eight years! I think I would have noticed...you don’t...you can’t mean all that,” Bodhi says uselessly, throat going dry at the open look of want in Cassian’s eyes.

“Bodhi, please,” Cassian says, easing into his space, “let me prove I mean this?” 

His hands come up to cup Bodhi’s jaw, tipping his face up so their eyes meet. Cassian’s lips quirk into a small smile when Bodhi leans into the touch, his look begging permission before he does anything else. Bodhi nods almost imperceptibly, feeling dazed from the sheer closeness of Cassian when he finally leans in and brushes their lips together.

It’s tentative and gentle, but once Bodhi’s mind catches up with the fact that this is reality, that it’s his chance, he presses forward into it with fervor. He brings his own hands up to rest on Cassian’s sides, fingers clutching for purchase in the fabric of his jacket. Cassian makes a sound and Bodhi takes a step back in distraction, wanting nothing more than the full weight of the man against him. The sudden chill of the freezer wall makes him gasp into Cassian’s mouth. 

“Jesus, we’re still stuck in here, I can’t...” Bodhi breaks off with a shiver, pulling back to gauge Cassian’s expression when he feels so entirely out of his depth. Cassian is biting his lip watching Bodhi with such a tender look in his eyes that Bodhi is sent reeling all over again. 

“Do you believe me now?” Cassian asks, soft and almost teasing.

“A little bit,” Bodhi answers, feeling light at the sudden rush of joy in his chest. Cassian smiles, bringing a hand up to card his fingers through Bodhi’s hair. He looks just as awed as Bodhi feels and Bodhi realizes he hasn’t even said anything back, not really.

“I feel the same, uh, in case that wasn’t obvious,” Bodhi says, for fairness sake.

“It was touch and go for a second there,” Cassian answers with a smile that might just melt everything around them. Bodhi would gladly spend the rest of the night there if Cassian will only promise not to let him go. He slides his arms around Cassian’s back, leaning in to capture his mouth in another kiss, when the telltale sound of the door opening with a whoosh of escaping air startles them both. They nearly fall into the cake, but, ultimately, Cassian keeps their balance.

Bodhi pulls back from his arms and eyes their saviour, his brother Bokan, of _course._ Bokan looks at them with mirth in his eyes, mouth breaking out in a wild grin. 

“Fucking _finally_ , Kay owes me twenty bucks!” Bokan says gleefully. “Now get out here and back to our party. Who the hell picks a freezer to fool around in anyway?” Bodhi feels a rush of embarrassment as they slide out of the cold room, about to sputter out a retort when Cassian reaches down to grasp his hand.

He can explain later, Bodhi thinks, or not at all for all he could care, sure his mother will figure it the moment she sees them anyway. He and Cassian will laugh about this all someday, will smile together and kiss _again_ and that’s something worth any amount of ridiculous mistakes Bodhi has made. Bokan looks at the two of them with a smugness in his eyes, like he wants to tease but he hasn’t quite puzzled out the right words. Maybe his marriage to Jordi has made him soft though, like Bodhi himself has teased, because he just shakes his head and waves them off with a grin.

“I’ll tell Kay to mail you the money,” Cassian says and Bokan laughs, letting them pass when Cassian seems intent on pulling him down the hall and into the reception. Cassian tugs them straight out onto the dance floor where they can press together, looping his arms around Bodhi’s waist to draw him close.

Eventually Bodhi’s mother spots them, waving them over to the side to scold her son.

“Why didn’t you just tell me you were dating?” she asks, swatting at Bodhi though she can’t seem to keep the smile from her face. She’d always liked Cassian after all. They go through her overinvested questioning, not even lying when Cassian confesses that the relationship is new. Bodhi’s mother is forgiving and glad that both her boys have settled, like it’s some sure thing that he and Cassian are already permanent. Bodhi never says outloud how much he wants to believe that, but he grins at the words. As for a job, after Bodhi balks that she shouldn’t ask so much right now, Cassian assures her several local companies have made offers to him already, and when he graduates, that he’s sticking around.

“I’ve finally settled on the one I want,” Cassian says, and the words have double meaning in the way he looks at Bodhi. The cake comes out and they’re finally freed, left standing by the side while she wanders off to cry and take more photos with Bokan and his bride.

Bodhi looks to Cassian and thinks that maybe in a few years he might give in to whatever wedding plans his mother is probably working out already after all.


End file.
